1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for dispensing a rinse solution on a substrate, and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for dispensing a rinse solution on a substrate to effectively remove resist defects while preventing chemical damage to the substrate.
2. Description of the Related Art
In material processing methodologies, pattern etching includes the application of a thin layer of light-sensitive material, such as photoresist, to an upper surface of a substrate that is subsequently patterned in order to provide a mask for transferring this pattern to the substrate during etching. The patterning of the light-sensitive material generally involves coating an upper surface of the substrate with a thin film of light-sensitive material, exposing the thin film of light-sensitive material to a radiation source through a reticle (and associated optics) using, for example, a micro-lithography system, followed by a developing process during which the removal of the irradiated regions of the light-sensitive material occurs (as in the case of positive photoresist), or the removal of non-irradiated regions occurs (as in the case of negative resist) using a developing solvent.
As is known to those skilled in the art of semiconductor manufacturing, the formation of the patterned mask can incur a number of defects including substrate defects, defects in the light-sensitive material, and defects in any one of the many process steps leading to the formation of the patterned film. For example rinsing and drying procedures used for the manufacture of semiconductor devices and the problems of particle retention and defect generation are described in U.S. Pat. No, 5,938,857, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference. Further, pending US application no. US 2003/0044731, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference, also describes the problem of resist defects.
The defects incurred in forming the pattern mask are often manifest as residual contamination retained in the patterned mask and/or substrate. Therefore, subsequent to the overall process for forming a patterned mask, a cleaning step is required, wherein a rinse solution is dispensed upon the substrate in order to remove resist defects. The present inventors have discovered, however, that conventional rinse systems and methods either provide insufficient removal of rinse defects or cause substrate damage.